What I see in different shades of gray, from behind my reading glasses
David Cain describes his mental switch to focus on one tile at a time instead of worrying about the pain of having to clean the whole floor.
As long as zeroed in on the current tile, rather than think about the dozens of tiles I had yet to clean, there was minimal discomfort and no tedium. Whenever my mind started to drift that way, I remembered my elegant strategy: look at a tile, and clean that tile. As far as I could tell, nothing more was required.
David Cain chucked a pretty good job to do his own thing. Here’s an interesting view from his first few days.
Because we’re so immersed in our lifestyles, it’s hard to see what individual parts of them are pushing and pulling on our minds.
It’s actually an indulgence. That’s not to say, however, that you’re taking from yourself more than you’re giving. Most indulgences are pleasures borrowed from your health or sanity — mindless entertainment, processed food, booze or needless shopping. But not in this case. You’re making your pleasure from the cleanest ingredients: leaves, water, and time.